Men's Swimming and Diving

Cardinals Open New Year with Win Over Shoremen

Jan 12, 2019

CHESTERTOWN, Md. - After a decent break from competitive swimming and a training trip in Florida, the Catholic University men's swimming & diving team began 2019 on a strong note, earning its fifth meet victory on Saturday afternoon over Washington College, 160-102.

Sophomore Gregory McCarthy led the charge for the Cardinals, winning in four different events. McCarthy was involved in the team's first-place finish in the opening event, the 200-medley relay. McCarthy (25.35), George Isaacs (28.26), Kevin Jay (24.35), and Matthew Mahon (22.16) combined for the top spot to begin the meet.

Fellow sophomore James Verby followed with a win in the 1000-freestyle with a time of 10:15.59. McCarthy picked up his second event win later on in event 10, the 100-breaststroke. The Silver Spring, Md. native finished first with a 1:00.09 time.

Junior Luke Nicholson (2:01.36) took first in the 200-butterfly, beating the second-place finisher by more than two full seconds for nine points. Isaacs (22.45) and Jay (22.69) then went one-two in the 50-freestyle sprint to cushion the Cardinals' lead at the halfway point of the meet.

Jeffrey Schriefer-Flores and Dan Lawrey combined for seven event points in the 200-backstroke with 2:01.99 and 2:06.43 times respectively, good for second and third in the event. McCarthy followed with his third event win in the 200-breaststroke with a 2:13.25 time that bested the nearest competition by more than two and a half seconds.

Verby continued his impressive afternoon with another long-distance event victory in the 500-freestyle. The Ijamsville, Md. native swam a 5:02.39 for the top spot in his second meet win. Jay followed with his first individual win in the 100-butterfly with a 54:10 time.

McCarthy finished his best performance of the season with a fourth event win in the 200-individual medley. He touched the wall for a 1:59.13 time that bested the second-place finisher by almost three seconds.

The Cardinals capped the meet off with a relay victory in the 200-freestyle in the final event of the day. Isaacs, Jay, Sam Hicks, and Mahon teamed up to take first with a time of 1:30.31.

Catholic improved to 5-1 in dual meets this season with the win. The team continues its season with a home meet against Randolph-Macon next Saturday, January 19 at 1 p.m.